Instead, at 39 years-old he’ll be retiring from the game and leaving behind a legacy that sees him as a folk hero in Detroit and despised by fans and goalies everywhere else.

In 15 seasons in the NHL, all with the Red Wings, Holmstrom won four Stanley Cups and finished with 243 goals. He also earned a reputation for bringing misery to opponents in front of the net thanks to his posterior and his stick work.

Detroit will likely give a shot to youngster Gustav Nyqvist to earn a larger role with the team and provide the goals they’ll lose with Holmstrom’s retirement.

Nyquist was a Hobey Baker Award finalist while playing at the University of Maine last year and after just a handful of games in the AHL, he’s getting his shot to steal a spot in the Wings’ lineup.

With Jiri Hudler playing like a guy who spent a year away from the NHL in Russia and the Red Wings in the midst of a four-game losing streak that’s seen their offense evaporate, Nyquist is getting the chance to prove he belongs. For a kid that’s just 22 years old, getting to crack the Red Wings lineup and play on a line with Franzen and Todd Bertuzzi gives him the chance to be the set-up man and designated speed demon.

For the Wings, it’s just another sign that their reliance on players out of Sweden is no joke and that if opponents would like to better talk trash, they’d best be bilingual.